September 30 Sunday – In Hartford Sam sent a letter with a funny story to Theodore Crane, obviously intended to cheer him up. The story was told to Sam by the Twichells who had just returned form a vacation in the Adirondacks. Seems the village store keeper did not stock the material Harmony Twichell was after called “turkey red,” and not only did he not stock it, he refused to do so because in the past it had sold out too often! The same storekeeper had quit as postmaster upon discovering he had to keep the post office open every day. Here’s one short enough to include — a story about the Clemens girls:

This morning Jean was kind of carrying on gaily, & Susie said, “Jean try to be quiet, please — aren’t you just a little promiscuous, this morning?

“I will gently remark that I am!”

She’s becoming elaborate in speech, you see. SLC